Kingdom of Ruin
by Dananndon
Summary: Set after EoS. Focus is mainly on Aelin and getting her back. What if Aelin is no longer saveable and Maeve is smarter than we all thought? Other storylines may be involved later on.


Time has been lost to Aelin Ashryver Galathynius of the wild fire. It is unknown when she was first locked into an iron coffin. She thought that she could not wait to get out of it, but now she relishes the time she is spent in here. When she is out of the coffin the only faces that she sees is beautiful sickly face of Maeve or the delighted terrifying face of Cairn. When they realised that she did not have the wyrd keys their faces did not have the joyous expression that they now always have plastered onto their faces.

Aelin could not decided who she would rather not see Maeve or Cairn. Cairn and her did have the same the same skill set of torturing people until they were not recognizable, expect that Aelin killed her victims, that deserved it of course. However, Cairn he was on a whole new playing field. After he would do what he did with her, he would have her healed just enough that she would not die due to her injuries, but could still feel the full weight of the pain. He has taken to creating a new Aelin out of her bones that he removes from her flesh. He then has healers help her regrow the missing bones. Not a pleasant process at all. The only bones that he is missing form a Aelin skeleton at this point is a skull, pelvis, and her spine. At this point though Aelin was even possibly hoping that he would remove her pelvis too and that it couldn't regrow. She hoped that this would stop some of the other terrible action that Cairn has been taking joy in doing, but deep down Aelin knew that he wouldn't risk that.

Maeve's actions are sometimes even worse though. She would hurt the healers that helped Aelin, or she would harm Fenrys, or Connall in front of Fenrys. And all of this took place in front of Aelin who was helpless to stop their pain.

The worst by far though is when she saw Rowan. It always started the same, with him coming to rescue her, but it varied each time. The first time she saw him, she thought it was so real. The hope, love, and fear in her sprang up. He tried and tried to open her coffin he was caught. Then she was released and Cairn would held her possessively. This drove Rowan insane. The hate, longing, and hopelessness were evident in the eyes of the man that hid all emotion. Cairn then had this way with Aelin in front of Rowan, who was spazzing and fighting the whole time. Aelin just kept eye contact with him as Cairn did what he did until he was finished. As he pulled out of Aelin her mate sagged, but didn't look any better as before. She then watched as Rowan was whipped until he passed out. Upon his eyes opening again Cairn took the liberty of removing Rowan's head.

Aelin screamed and screamed as the head of her carranam, husband, equal, and mate rolled across the floor. She understood the pain that Dorian must had felt when he had to watch Sorscha die. However, this was not real. Aelin heard Maeve laugh and when she did Rowan's body disappeared. Because he was never there. Rowan was not dead.

Aelin had seen Rowan die several more times. Sometimes it wasn't just Rowan, but Aedion, Chaol, Dorian, Lysandra, and so many more. Even Sam and Nehemia made their appearances in her torture. Aelin decided she prefered to spend time with Cairn then with Maeve.

Maeve told her, "If you just tell me where the wyrd keys are this will stop. Not that I want it to stop, because you deserve so much more of this, but I will stop if you give me the location of the keys."

At first Aelin responded to this offer with her snarky comebacks like, "But I would miss my time with the Royal Bitch.", or "Oh I forgot they are right here!" That one was followed by Aelin pulling her middle finger out from behind her back. But Aelin has been lacking the strength needed for these comments. These days she has just remained silent, doing her best to act as if she was bored by the whole ideal.

The issue was that each time a person from her life tried to help her, it felt so real. Too real. It took her 2 years to not even respond to seeing the people from her what she now considers her past life. This meant more time with Cairn than Maeve.

Rowan

For two years Rowan had been to every country, city, town, or center of the Ocean were Maeve might have been that he had known of. Lorcan, Gabriel, and Elide have continued to travel with him. They have put up with him for two full years. Over this time Lorcan and Elide have seemed to have made up. She still isn't as familiar with him as they had once been, but the total hate and distrust had turned to outward indifference, but obvious lust and maybe something more too. Gabriel had come to terms with being dismissed from Maeve, he turned inward to himself. He looked to Elide as protector, not like Lorcan, but whenever they were faced with trouble both males went to protect Elide as their first move. Lorcan who is the better fighter of the two would then join Rowan in fighting. On down time Gabriel had taken to teaching Elide combat. This would involve Lorcan looking on and interjecting his comments and opinions, that Elide did not really care for.

Rowan has stayed very to himself. He preferred to be in his hawk form over his fae form. His fae body belonged to Aelin. He drank her blood in his fae form. He fell in love with her in fae form. He made love to her in his fae form. He married her in his fae form. He could feel exactly where her pain was through either the blood oath or the _mating_ bond. He couldn't feel all of her pain, he knew that her pain who constant. He tried to be optimistic that she was fine, but he wasn't going to fool himself. He knew she was in pain, he knew she was suffering. And that drove him crazy. In his fae form he knew exactly where a blow could have killed her was placed. Where a knife dug into her too deep. Where a whip broke across her skin so deep that it most likely hit bone. In his hawk form he still felt the pain. Nothing no matter what he did could stop her pain, but in his hawk form he could not tell exactly where the pain was fixated. He didn't focus in on the spot on her skin that was now marked for the rest of her life, however long that is. No she would live a long life. And it would been in his arms. Her gold ringed eyes will close every night in the same bed as his. As soon as he found her he would never let her go again.

Rowan was currently in his hawk form sitting around their camp fire in the Southern continent pretending to sleep. He sat far away from the fire that reminded himself so much of his wildfire. In the distance Rowan could smell a scent that he hasn't smelt in close to three years now. He shifted into his fae form readying for an attack. Lorcan moved too and Gabriel wasn't far behind. Elide stayed sleeping on the ground.

As the man approached Rowan felt joy for the first time in two years. He knew that this was their first lead of Aelin since she was taken.

Connal approached them slowly with his hands up. To show that he wasn't here for a fight. As he walked to the members of the ex cadre Rowan could see the 3 lines on each arm of Connal that had scabbed over. Those lines matched Lorcan and Gabriel's. Connal was dishonorably removed from being on of Maeve's blood sworn.

"Why" is the only word that left Rowan's mouth after the males stood around together for a solid minute without speaking.

"Fenrys. Fenrys was caught trying to help the fire Queen. In punishment she banished me, because that is what she is good at. Not hurting you but the ones around you." Rowan did not know what to think about this. His mind was racing. Aelin. Aelin. Aelin. He has to focus. To save her he has to focus.

"Then whose side are you on?" Lorcan barked out.

"Even though Maeve is how Maeve is, and she has been treating Fenrys and myself, she is my queen. Or I guess she was my queen."

"Which is it?" Lorcan said wanting to get right down to it.

"I suppose the same as you. No longer having relations with Maeve."

Rowan was able to use his mouth again, "Where is she?" Rowan did not even know if he was talking about she, Maeve the woman he would kill or she, Aelin, the mate that he had to save.

Connal's face went pale. This made Rowan's stomach turn in anticipation, "Where?!" Rowan basically screamed that. But it was Elide who spoke. No one even saw her get up in this tense environment.

"They are in Morath. Aren't they?" Elide stated it as a question, but it was clear she knew the answer. Connal just gave a brief nod.

"How did you know that?" Lorcan asked now looking at Elide.

"I am not sure, maybe it is the smell of him or the expression on his face, the expression that someone could get from just leaving Morath."

Gabriel who was secretly calculating all of this in his head, "Maeve just let you come to us and tell us her location? That doesn't seem like a Maeve move."

"It' s a trap." Rowan said, but he didn't look scared at all, just ready to do something that has a purpose for once.


End file.
